Ealing North
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Steve Pound MP Ealing North |
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Thank God for an Ealing Summer July 2002 And so, farewell to the month of June. For many people this is the time of warm summer evenings, playing in the park and gentle walks into the soft, slow-falling dusk. It's a time of working in the garden and meeting the family of foxes that has moved in under the redcurrant bushes. June is the month of summer fetes, and this year was a vintage one. I try to limit myself to no more than five a day but, even so, I'm bound to miss some. Every summer fair or fete is different. I could write a "good fete guide" which would recommend the cream teas at St.Mary's Northolt and the strawberries and cream at Our Lady of the Visitation. The burgers at Northolt Primary were excellent and almost made up for the concentrated wet sponge hurling that I endured The new Headteacher, Sarah Wilson, may have excellent academic qualifications but she can't half throw a mean sponge. The best range of food can be found at Montpelier and the sheer number of stalls and sideshows at St. Raphael's would be hard to beat. Best celebrity opening was undoubtedly Peter Crouch's appearance at North Ealing - what an absolute star that man is! - and auctioning his England under 21 shirt won him even more friends. Most dangerous job for an MP was judging the pet competition at Selborne. Not that the animals were any threat but having to disappoint all those children clutching their guinea-pigs and clinging on to their dog's leads is heartbreaking. If ever there was a case for all having prizes then this is the occasion. Best Fancy Dress Costume worn by a Head teacher would be Sue Townson's at Viking (she will be known as Your Majesty from now on). The Best Run Beer Tent award has to go to Hobbayne, although I have only a vague recollection of it. The Northolt Lions Tombola Stall is recommended to everyone but myself. As I couldn't win a thing I'm assuming that everyone else was happy. Best live music had to be St.Joseph's and the hardest fancy dress competition from the point of view of the judges was certainly Northolt Village's. Best bargains? Wood End Scouts, as ever. All in all I can look back on another great June. In between the fairs and fetes I had to spend a couple of days in Belfast. The weather may have been as warm but there was a cold, cold feeling in the air. Talking to families in the Short Strand area of East Belfast made me long for the life we take for granted in Ealing. It's blast-bombs and baton rounds that you fear there, not wet sponges. The smell in the air isn't barbecue but burning petrol. The kids out on the streets aren't playing games; they're trying to stay alive. Summer in Northern Ireland is a slow terrifying descent into the July "marching season" and its not music that fills the air but the sound of the lambeg drums and the crash of rocks through glass. I thank the Lord that I live in Ealing, and pray for the day that summer will one day be as sweet in Short Strand as it is in our world. |
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| Disclaimer | Copyright | Designed by Bassam Mahfouz. Promoted by Julian Bell, The Labour Party, Ruskin Hall, 16 Church Road, W3 8PP on behalf of Steve Pound MP |
